Catalyst
by BuddhaBooty
Summary: G1: They were the bane of his existence, but when fate decides to take them away, what will he do? Can one little box help bring him the joy he needs? Story will probably be changed constantly.
1. Sunstreaker's Box

The tall, bulky mech stood infront of the grey door, breathe coming in short, quick gasps, shaking his red and white form, as he remembered who used to live here.

They were the bane of his existence. Everything they did seemed to irritate him, but when they had arrived in his medical bay, bodies torn, energon leaking, faces contorted in agony, he had suddenly realized just how much they had meant to him. He LOVED then, Primus fraggit! Watching their bodies suddenly lose color, the twinkle of mischief in their optics gone, had hurt more than any physical wound ever could.

Sunstreaker had been the most vain mech he had ever known. The onyx and golden bot was always complaining about his paint, finish, or wax. The fact was, though few would admit it, that he was the most handsome Autobot on the planet. His golden paint had often caught the early morning dawn, reflecting a cool, serene ray of light onto the mountain. He had many times followed the beautiful mech to watch this. This was the time when the melee warrior, whose anger and temper were feared by all, both Autobot and Decepticon, was truly calm, sitting on a ledge, sketching the dawn with such precision as to stun the greatest of Earth's artists into eternal silence.

There was only one mech aboard the Ark that could rival Sunstreaker's beauty, and that was Sideswipe. The cherry red mech was nearly always wearing a smile to launch a thousand star fleets. His attitude was a beam of hope in the dark war, even if you were on the receiving end of one of his pranks. The bot had loved to cause trouble whenever he could, and woe betide the mech who invoked the wrath of Sideswipe, which, considering how level-headed he was, was usually only possible by hurting his brother.

The two had been inseparable. Sunstreaker's fierce strength was complimented by Sideswipe's deadly aim. They were a package deal. They got into trouble together. They defeated many Decepticons together. They had shared a spark since the moment they came online. They were brothers. Closer, still, they were twins. They were dangerous when they were alone, if that ever happened, but together, they had always been thought unstoppable.

Until now.

Ratchet recalled how, after watching the damage that their latest attempt at jet judo with all three of the seekers had ended horrifically, he had shut himself in his room, locked the door, overridden all the security programs so that the only way in was with an extremely powerful cannon blast, and collapsed. He had lain on the floor for weeks, refusing to allow anyone to enter. Prime had shouted at him through the door, but no one seemed to be able to open it. He had nearly died from lack of sustenance.

Then, one day - or maybe night - he heard a soft rustling. When he looked up, he saw a folded sheet of paper had been slid under his door.

Summoning his strength, he reached out and grabbed it, unfolding it with trembling, strained hands.

It had been in Sunstreaker's hand writing.

The note had said to come to their room and look on the top shelf of Sunny's closet. It said there would be a box. He was to take the box back to his room without opening it and, when he reached the room, sit on his berth and make a wish, then open the box. The note had told him that he HAD to make a wish before he could open the box, and that the wish had to be what he wanted the most in the universe.

Ratchet, delirious from exhaustion and lack of fuel, had thought Sideswipe had come up with another prank and had swiftly leapt up and raced to the twin's quarters to reprimand them for their foolishness.

Only after he reached the door did he remember the most important fact.

Sideswipe and Sunstreaker were dead.

The tall, bulky mech stood infront of the grey door, breathe coming in short, quick gasps, shaking his red and white form, as he remembered who used to live here.

Shouts were heard as though his audios were wrapped in cloth. He was unsure of what happened in that moment, but, the next moment found him lying on the floor, someone's gentle, soothing hands stroking the side of his helm and whispering something inaudible.

Ratchet shuttered his optics as he lost consciousness, dreams of his long gone twins dancing about his memory banks.


	2. Dreaming of You

You know the drill. I don't own any of this stuff no matter HOW much I wish I did.

Megatron: Why aren't I in this? I'm in barely any of your stories! I want a story that's just for me!! Write me a story!!

Merk: facepalm Would you just do the shout out?!

Megatron: Fine. Super cookies go out to Dragowolf. - Merk was very pleased with your comment and would hug you right now, but she does not wish to give you her cold.

Merk: sniffle Thanks, Drago!! uber glomp

--

Ratchet shuttered his optics as he lost consciousness, dreams of his long gone twins dancing about his memory banks.

--

(Dream)

"Hey, Ratch, why didn't you make a wish?" asked an annoyed Sideswipe.

"You're not real," Ratchet replied, retreating into a dark corner of his mind, praying these images would leave him alone and stop torturing him.

Instead of leaving, the twins gave each other a quick glance before slowly approaching the trembling mech. The two knelt beside him and, holding him between them, wrapped Ratchet in all of the infinite, child-like love they had for him, confirming their existence and re-igniting his hope.

Ratchet was, for a moment, content to simply exist there, warm and loved, but the twins eventually pulled away, faces becoming somber as they gazed at Ratchet.

"You have to make the wish, Ratchet. Think of it as our dying request. Please," Sunstreaker begged.

--

Ratchet opened his mouth to reply, but the dream was over.

The sterile, cream ceiling of his medical bay was the first thing Ratchet saw, followed by the concerned faces of his commander and friends.

"Ratchet?" Optimus whispered, making said bot realize exactly how much he had neglected himself. His helm hurt. Like. Slag.

Ratchet ignored it, though. He had a wish to make.

He sat up, despite the protests from his body and fellow Autobots, and bolted to the twin's quarters. He keyed in the code, threw open the door, ran to Sunstreaker's closet, and froze. The room smelled of them, the twins' joy and sorrow. It seemed to be asking 'Who are you?' and 'Why are you here, in our twins' room?' The walls were covered in paintings and sketches done by Sunstreaker, and the berth hadn't been fixed up from that morning.

The morning they died.

Ratchet couldn't stand to be in the room any longer. He ran out, colliding with Optimus's chest, the two of them falling over, hitting the wall with a resounding 'oowouw!'

"Ratchet, are you alright?" Optimus asked, positioning the medic so that he sat in his lap, cradled against Optimus's chassis as he leaned against the wall, wrapping his long arms around the frantic medic.

Ratchet refused to reply, but simply sobbed, curling in on himself, wishing to disappear.

The two stayed still for a long moment, the silence broken only by the occasional sniffle from the candy cane-colored mech. Finally, Ratchet seemed to realize where he was and leapt up, brushing himself off and apologizing furiously to his commander, who stood up and replied that it was not a problem.

"O-Optimus, I have to go," Ratchet spoke before he rushed off to Wheeljack's quarters.

"Jack?" Ratchet called nervously into the room as he crept in, glancing about for the inventor.

"Yeah?" came the reply as said bot came into view, holding his latest invention.

Upon seeing who had called for him, Wheeljack froze, hands falling to his sides and gadget falling to the floor.

"Ratchet?" he asked, inching a bit closer to the one mech he'd known since he was a sparkling.

"Jack, I need your help," Ratchet embraced his friend closely, praying that he would listen.

"Anything you need, Ratch, I'm here for you, just don't ever leave me like that again," Wheeljack replied.

"I need you to shut off my olfactory sensor, my optics, and to guide me through the twins' room, to Sunstreaker's closet. You need to help me reach the box on one of the shelves. It was Sunny's last request," Ratchet explained.

Wheeljack looked like he was ready to object for a moment before he seemed to think better of it and nodded.

"First, though, you're gettin' some energon in you or I'll tie you down and funnel it into your mouth!" shouted Wheeljack playfully, walking over to his personal energon dispenser.

Ratchet smiled lightly for the first time in weeks, sitting on his friend's berth as he was brought a full cube of energon.

"Don't drink too quickly, Ratchet. Your systems won't be able to handle it," warned Wheeljack, handing a cube to Ratchet as he sat next to him, hand on his back, stroking it lightly, showing just how worried he had been about his friend.

Ratchet looked down into the swirling liquid, purples and reds mixing and dancing together, pink flowing about them. It was almost symbolic. The hope, the chance for a peaceful co-existance, it was all there. They just needed a reason. They needed a catalyst.

Ratchet placed the cube against his lower lip and - gently, slowly - tipped his head back, drinking the life-giving fluid with rapidly increasing vigor. As the cube was finished, he turned to request another one from his friend, but instead found himself leaping up and rushing to a waste receptacle, vaguely aware of a soothing hand on his back amid the searing pain that tore through his throat.

As Ratchet leaned back on Wheeljack's chest, he could hear the engineer reprimanding him for his foolishness.

"Dang, Ratch, I told you your systems wouldn't be able to handle it," he whispered, concern evident in his tone of voice.

"Sorry, was too hungry to care," came the gurgled reply as Ratchet struggled to keep his optics open.

Wheeljack shook his head as he returned Ratchet to his berth and grabbed another energon cube. Tilting the medic's head back, he allowed a few drops to drible silently down the other's tracheatic tube, soothing the rough, burned metal along the way.

Wheeljack pulled away for a few moments, allowing the liquid to settle a bit before resuming the process, feeding his medic slowly so as not to cause another tank purge.

"Ratchet, I don't think you should be walking around at all, much less without your sensors," Wheeljack explained, listening to the groans of pain from the mech in his arms.

"Have...to...Jack...Promised," Ratchet ground out.

Wheeljack had known Ratchet long enough to know that once his mind was set, that was it. So, with much reluctance, Wheeljack turned off all of Ratchet's sensors, save hearing and touch.

Gently, supporting the medic, the two made their way into the twin's room and opened the closet. Ratchet's hands were guided to the box and he lifted it up carefully, as if it were the spark of Primus himself.

Once they were out of the room, Wheeljack turned Ratchet's sensors back on and Ratchet thanked him and made a mad dash for his quarters, clinging to the box for his twins.

Ratchet threw open the door and flopped onto his bed, thoroughly exhausted. All he wanted was his twins. That was all he thought as he tore open the box, revealing . . .

--

MWAHAHAHA!! Yes, I am the evilest!! PH34R M3!! I am holding the next chapter ransom for . . . REVIEWS!!


	3. Ratchet's Pandora

SQUEEE!! The ransom has been paid!! Here is the next chapter!! And I still don't own it!

--

Ratchet threw open the door and flopped onto his bed, thoroughly exhausted. All he wanted was his twins. That was all he thought as he tore open the box, revealing a small, emaciated human femme.

Ratchet stared in amazement for nearly ten minutes, his mind attempting to wrap around how the twins had kept a human child a secrete in the base. Had they left her there, in the box, for him to find? Had this all been planned out? How had she survived the weeks in that box? What was going on?

Ratchet was unsure as he lifted the child up, cradling her frail, toddler body in hands steadied by years as a medic. The child looked up at him and cooed, drool bubbling forth from her mouth. Her body was too thin, a fact that stung his already heavy conscience. It was because of his refusal to open the box that she was in that state.

The femme let out a yawn, stretching to test her body in the light of his quarters, effectively conveying Ratchet's feelings at the moment.

Ratchet sent a comm. message to Wheeljack, telling him to 'get his aft to his quarters, stat!' and telling him to bring human food.

Ratchet could tell, this was going to be a long night.

--

"Ratchet, all I could find that hadn't expired in the fridge was something Spike said was called green beans. Why do you want it any - what's that?!" Wheeljack froze mid-stride as he stared at the child crawling about the room.

"The box, Jack. This is what the twins left me. How in the - FRAGGING PRIMUS, DON'T TOUCH THAT!!" Ratchet shouted, pulling the toddler away from his arc welder just in time to avoid her being turned to ash.

Ratchet rushed over to Wheeljack and snatched the food from him. He held it out in one hand, offering it to the child. The young girl tilted her head to one side as she lifted a bean in one small fist, scrunching her eyes to get a better look at it, before deeming it inedible and tossing it with astounding precision at Ratchet's helm.

Ratchet quickly caught the falling bean and brought the pile back to her front.

"Don't do that, femme! You are to ingest these, slowly, mind you, so as not to upset your internal systems. They are not for throwing!" Ratchet scolded, shooting the hysterical Wheeljack a glare that had kept many newly-assigned medics in their proper place. A glare that had shaken even the most cruel of seekers. A glare that lasted exactly .007 seconds before being interrupted by a shrill squeal of delight as the child discovered that the green beans could be shoved into the crevices in Ratchet's hands, subsequently getting them crushed into a goop-like substance.

"No!" Ratchet shouted, fearing the food was ruined and the child would continue unfed.

The femme loved it.

As Ratchet and Wheeljack stared in amazement, the human crammed small handfulls of the mashed peas into her mouth, humming happily as she ate.

"Would ya look at that? Ratchet, I don't think the femme'll go hungry. Not eating like that, anyway," laughed the inventor, patting Ratchet on the back before setting to work throwing out the box.

Ratchet saw this and spun a full 180, shouting, "No! Jack, dont!"

Wheeljack held the box just millimeters above the garbage disposal, expression questioning.

"It's all I have left of them, Jack. Please, don't," he begged.

"Alright, Ratchet, but the child didn't exactly live in a sterile environment while she was in there. To use a human term, there's crap everywhere," Wheeljack explained, holding the onyx box out to Ratchet, lapis stones coating it's top. The Autobots were totally unaware of its value.

"I don't care. I'll clean it myself, but I at least want this reminder of them. Please, Jack," Ratchet argued, the child still picking green goop from his hand, blissfully unaware of her surroundings.

Wheeljack nodded, placing the box gently on Ratchet's bed side table for him to take care of.

"We do need to do something with the kid, though, Ratch. You may be a medic, but you're not a mom. It needs a real home," Wheeljack began, only to be cut off by Ratchet.

"I know, Jack. I'm giving her to Prime. He'll know what to do," Ratchet explained.

"First, though, I think we ought to get you and the kid cleaned up," he giggled, carefully taking the femme from Ratchet's hands.

"Oh! Right! Let's take care of her first. I believe we'll need warm water, soap, shampoo, and conditioner. I'll go get some from Carly. You get the water warm, around 98 degrees," Ratchet instructed as he ran out to find the girl.

Wheeljack began looking around for a tub, knowing that this was not going to end well.

--

After many failed attempts, they finally got the child cleaned. The entire time was spent trying to keep the girl from drowning or screaming too loudly. In the end, Ratchet an Wheeljack figured they would not need to visit the wash racks for a few months at least.

"So, Ratch, how'd you get the stuff from Carly without her suspecting anything?" Wheeljack asked curiously.

"I told her you were trying to create a hair bomb," Ratchet replied truthfully, earning himself a smack form the inventor.

The two laughed, the young child joining in, for the first time in many days, just having fun.

"So, I guess we should take her to Prime, now," Wheeljack sadly stated, looking longingly at the girl.

"She's asleep, Jack. I think we can wait until her recharge is over. Besides, I'm not moving another inch until I've deemed myself recharged. Prime can wait for morning and frag the consequences," Ratchet groused, laying on his back and carefully placing the girl on his chest as he prepared for recharge.

"I can wait for morning, hm?" came a voice from the door.

'Oh, slag,' thought Ratchet as he came to a horrible realization.

Prime knew, and he wasn't happy.

--

Read and review! Constructive criticism ALWAYS welcome!

Alright. I won't be able to update until Saturday. I'm going to New Jersey because my grandmama has liver cancer. Please, even if you're not Catholic, pray for her. Her name is Felecia, just so you know.

Responses:

Dragowolf: THAT'S what's in the box! A creepy kid! With baby poo! LOL, please don't hate me, it does get better!

InsanityRulz: I try! :)

cmdretkk: Aww!! I blushed when I read yours! Thank you for the kind words! Megsy says hi!

Celesta SunStar: Here it is! And what good is an evol jeane us without evol gloatin'? LOL, I know, that was really bad.


	4. Should I Stay or Should I Go

I just want to thank everyone who commented on my last chapter. I'm not in a mood to list everyone, but I'll be nice and update. See, I've been in NJ for the past few days. My grandma's dead. I would like to apologize to Dragowolf for being mean to her. I kinda freaked and took it out on her. So sorry and I pray you'll forgive me. This is the next chapter. Enjoy.

Still don't own.

--

"I can wait for morning, hm?" came a voice from the door.

'Oh, slag,' thought Ratchet as he came to a horrible realization.

Prime knew, and he wasn't happy.

--

"Well, Ratchet, it would appear that the twins had legally adopted the child. They were planning on raising her together as a project. When they died, you were the one who had been named godfather, so now the child, whose name is Marietta, by the way, is, legally yours," Optimus stated, watching the stunned look on his old friend's face.

Ratchet could barely believe what he was hearing. He had a child, now. He was a parent. His twins get taken from him and, barely a few weeks later, this new, pink, squishy thing shows up, trying to replace them!

Ratchet leapt up and fled to his quarters, Wheeljack running after him, cradling the child in his arms as if she were the Allspark. He flung open his door and all but threw the toddler onto his berth, causing her to shriek in fear.

"No!" he shouted at her, features harsh and optics cold. "I don't care if you're hurt! I don't care that you're an orphan! I don't even care that your parents were killed by Megatron! You will NEVER take my twins from me!"

Wheeljack pounded on the locked door, shouting for Ratchet to open it, quickly joined by Optimus, who tried to key the override unsuccessfully.

Ratchet glared at the girl, tears welling in her small, blue eyes. He didn't care. She could cry all she liked and he wouldn't care. This thing had tried to take his twins' place, and he could not forgive that.

Staring into her soft eyes, Ratchet's hard heart began to melt. He couldn't stay angry at the child! She had done nothing wrong! Lifting her up, he cradled her near his spark, swearing to always protect her.

Tentatively, he opened the door, allowing Optimus and Wheeljack in.

"Ratchet, where is she?!" Optimus nearly screeched, worrying for the safety of the human.

"Prime, she's safe. I'm sorry for running off. It won't happen again, sir," Ratchet assured, giving a quick nod of respect.

"See that it doesn't. I was going to tell you that, if you don't want to keep the child, there are others who would take care of her. Ratchet, old friend, whatever your decision, we're behind you. We don't have to let the rest of the ARK know, if you don't want them to. We will understand if you don't want her. I know it is hardest on you, of all mech, that the twins are gone. I understand that you feel like accepting this child will be trying to replace them. I support you decision, whatever it may be," Optimus soothed the older mech's fears with gentle words.

"If it's all the same to you, Prime, I want to keep her. I want to keep Marietta," Ratchet stated, a glint of hope in his voice.

Wheeljack gently placed a hand on his best friend's shoulder and spoke, "I'll be with you all the way, Ratch. You'll need help raising a kid, especially a human kid."

Ratchet smiled at his friends. It wasn't going to be easy, but this was what he wanted, and so he would do his best to raise this child right.

"Optimus, could you tell the ARK about Marri? I need to get her fed and build her a suitable bed," Ratchet requested.

"Of course," Optimus smiled as he left the room, a comm. going out to the whole ARK to meet in the main room stat.

"I'll take care of the bed if you'll do the feeding," offered Wheeljack. Ratchet gladly accepted and the two got to work on their tricky tasks.

--

A silence filled the main hall of the ARK, finally broken by Spike's naive question.

"Wait, weren't Sunstreaker and Sideswipe twins? Isn't that incest?" he asked disgustedly.

"Maybe on your planet, Spike, but for Cybertronians it is different. Twins are a rare mutation. You see, when a Transformer wants a creation, they do not always need a partner to, well, create one," Prowl began, taking the liberty of giving Spike 'the talk'.

"When a Cybertronian creates a new being, they first must visit a medic to see if their spark is capable. A capable spark must be of a certain density to form new sparks. The denser the spark, the better chance of a successful creation. If the spark is dense enough, than the next step would be to build a proto form. Any mech or femme can do this part. It is the easiest part of the entire creation process.

"Next, they would need to either interface through spark contact with another Cybertronian, or, if their spark is able, they can receive a download. The latter is a very rare form of procreation. It is an extremely risky process. The only mechs I can think of right now that have had the download are Blaster and Soundwave. This is why they have so many offspring. They can access the data at any time to form a new spark.

"Once the spark is begun, it will take between fifty and seventy orns - an orn is about thirteen days, so it would be between 1 4/5 to 2 1/2 Earth years - to mature. After it is matured, the process becomes dangerous. In this war, that I know of, there was only one real set of twins. Rumble and Frenzy were planned as two separate sparks.

"When a spark is separated from its creator, the creator is offline. The process is too extensive to explain fully, but basically, the spark is taken from the creator's spark chamber and put into the proto form. While out of the protection of a spark chamber, anything that touches the spark has the potential to damage it. It is a risky procedure.

"When a set of twins occurs, the spark that is placed in the chamber of the new creation instantly seeks to return to its creator. When this happens, part of the spark will wish to remain while part seeks to leave. The spark will divide itself, forming two half sparks with two different personalities. From what studies have shown, the spark that wishes to stay normally has the more lenient personality - Sideswipe - and the one that wishes to return to the creator will be less stable - Sunstreaker. There are always extra proto forms kept at medical facilities for this circumstance.

"All this leads up to why the twins' love for each other was not incest. You see, because they were two halves of the same spark, their sparks actively sought their other. It was an accepted fact that if we lost one, there would be nothing short of a miracle that would save the other. They could barely stand to be in different rooms. The twins were created as what you would call soul mates, only much, much deeper than that. They were one being with two minds. That is why it was not incest, Spike. That is also why we haven't had a sparkling, or child, since Bumblebee," Prowl concluded, several mech who had not known this listening intently. (a/n: for more on TF smex, see Cybertronian Reproduction Rant which will be posted asap)

"Wow, Prowl, I never even considered anything like that. Gosh, I'm so sorry," Spike replied, feeling like a total idiot.

"It's alright, Spike. You didn't know." replied Prowl.

"So Wheeljack and Ratchet are going to raise the girl together?" he asked, changing the subject.

"Well, they are spark mates. Before you ask, it means that they both carry a piece of the other's spark within their own. Similar to marriage, only it can't be undone," answered Jazz.

"Oh my gosh, I'm on a ship full of giant, gay robots!" laughed Spike teasingly. The entire ARK joined in as the uneasy silence that had come from the news of Ratchet's melt down dissipated like fog before the sun.

And, for the moment, things looked good.


	5. Driving Me Crazy

Here's the next chapter and no, I still don't own it. Mari may seem like a Mary Sue, but she's just more Autobot than human. Imagine how smart you'd be if you were raised by the Autobots. And no, I don't want to be like that. No offense, but I'm blonde and happy to stay that way.

And, for the moment, things looked good.

--

(14 years later)

"Poppa! I'm seventeen years old! Can't I drive? Just this once? Don't I deserve at least this?" begged Marietta, now known simply as Mari.

Mari had grown into a beautiful girl of seventeen, waist length, ebony hair always pulled back for safety, she was the best human mechanic on Earth. Her common attire consisted of baggy cargo pants and a tank top that revealed her belly button while being tucked into the back of her pants. Her belt held an array of basic tools and a remote control that was her subspace pocket, GPS, com link, and many other useful things, courtesy of Wheeljack. She had gone to an Earth school while being privately tutored by nearly everyone on the Ark. Bluestreak taught her to aim, Prowl tutored her in grammar and logic, Wheeljack and Perceptor in Science, Optimus in leadership skills, honor, and public speaking, and Ratchet in medical fields.

"Of course my little girl deserves nothing but the best," Ratchet began, a counter strike sure to win.

"Yeah..." Mari prompted, hoping for the best.

"And on Earth, movie stars have private limousines," Ratchet continued.

"Yeah..." she was getting anxious to know where this was headed.

"And since movie stars never drive, neither will you," concluded the medic, a smug grin of triumph sneaking onto his face.

"WHAT?!" she shrieked, her vocal range amazing Ratchet to no end.

"Are your audios malfunctioning?" questioned Ratchet, knowing he had won this round of teen vs. parent.

"No, sir," she mumbled, climbing into Ratchet's passenger seat with defeated sluggishness.

Fourteen years had given their reward, for Ratchet's daughter had become a beautiful, gentle, kind soul with a temper to match his own. Though they had had their share of troubles, all had turned out well and Ratchet had finally understood why the twins had wanted him to raise this girl. She was the source of such innocence and hope, and yet, he could swear that he had never had to work as hard with BOTH of the twins as ha had to in order to keep ONE human female in line. Oh, they had their share of quarrels, the most notorious of which happened right before her first period (A/n PLEASE, somebody, write a fic about this! I tried and it turned out crappyoladeedah!), they loved one another unconditionally, as only a father and a daughter could. Sure, Wheeljack, who had been known as Uncle Jack until recently, had contributed his fair share, but Ratchet was the closest to the girl, and she was the closest to his spark aside from his mate. She had not taken the twins' place, but built her own on love and trust.

"Now, cheer up, Mari. I don't want you sulking at school," Ratchet reprimanded.

"Keh! I barely need to be conscious to ace THAT half-witted chaos cluster of classes," she huffed indignantly, crossing her arms over her chest.

"Yes, but I would like it if you at least TRIED to be friendly towards your fellow class mates," Ratchet sighed. Being the smartest and strongest in her class, Mari didn't see the need to play nice with the idiots who surrounded her. They couldn't even figure out the difference between the quadratic formula and linear functions!

"Fine, I'll play nice, but if that fragger, Lily Forlow tries to steal my lunch again, I'll reconstruct her Corvette as a station wagon!" ranted Mari. At this, Ratchet chuckled. Those two had been enemies since kindergarden and Lily still tried to defeat Mari. Physically speaking, it was impossible.

"Alright, Mari, if you play nice today, and I don't hear anything bad about you from the principal, you may drive Wheeljack home," Ratchet bargained, knowing he would regret it.

Mari was silent for a moment before, "I love Lily!"

Ratchet simply sighed as he dropped the emotional teen off at school.


	6. Super Puberty!

Still don't own it! Wow, this took forever to get up. I swear, will not let me update!! It's conspiring against me! AK!! Anyway, here's the next chapter, and no, I still don't own it.

Also, seriously, people, how hard is it to just give a girl a review? That's all I ask!! My last two or three chapters have only gotten one review each from the extremely faithful and wonderful person, Dragowolf!! Lurve ya, gal!! Anywho, all I ask is that someone take the time to comment and maybe even look up some of my other stories. I have had Captive up for nearly a week and guess how many reviews it has? None. Okay, wow, this is getting long winded and bitchy. Totally reflecting my personality in my writing! YAY!! (sings) I'm a betch, betch, betchy betchy betch!! I love bein a betch!! I- (is shot) X.X

--

Ratchet simply sighed as he dropped the emotional teen off at school.

--

"Yes, Principal Hollan, Marietta will not be attending school tomorrow. I will make sure she is punished properly. She won't be lazing about like some children do. Yes, yes, I am very sorry, sir. Good bye to you, too, sir," Ratchet ended the communication as he turned to glare at his weeping daughter.

The day had found Mari up to her eyes in trouble. It had started as usual, Lily making a snide remark about her outfit and Mari ignoring her completely as she hurried to her first class, AP English. All through English, Lily threw spit balls at Mari, who continued to ignore her, reminding herself of her goal. Finally, at lunch, the brunette said the one thing that set Marietta off like a bomb.

"Hey, it's the replacement child! You know, the only reason the Autobots adopted you is because they're a bunch of gay kid-fuckers!"

And Mari saw red.

Ten minutes after that, the gym teacher, football coach, and wrestling coach all held Mari off as the nurse dragged the battered girl to the infirmary. From there, it had been a call to Ratchet, a suspension, and three months of detention following her return to school. Marietta also needed Ratchet to sign an explanation of the events and an apology for the principal.

"Why, Marietta?!" Ratchet shouted, pulling her up to his face. "Why did you attack Lily? You very well could have killed her!"

"It's no less than she deserved! If she can't learn to keep her mouth shut, then she needs to be taught a lesson! Besides, I knew what I was doing. If I had wanted her dead, she would be!" Marietta shrieked right back, tears streaming down her face.

"That's neither an excuse, nor an explanation, Marietta. Explain yourself, now!" demanded Ratchet, furious at his daughter for disobeying him.

"You wanna know why I beat the shit out of her? She said I was a replacement child and that the only reason you and the other Autobots adopted me is because you're a bunch of gay kid-fuckers! I couldn't let her call you something like that and get away with it! You happy now?" by the end of that, both Mari and Ratchet were fuming.

Picking up the phone and dialing Principal Hollan, Ratchet decided to give him the explanation of a life time.

"Hello, Principal Hollan's office, how may I help you?" came the cheery voice of one of the secretaries.

"This is Autobot Ratchet, put me through to Principal Hollan immediately," Ratchet's voice did not conceal the immense anger he felt toward the one who had not given his daughter a chance to defend herself.

"Principal Hollan here, Ratchet. What seems to be the problem?" he asked, sounding uninterested.

"May I ask WHY it is that my daughter attacked Lily? You do know that she had the right to defend herself, correct? So tell me, Mr. Hollan, what did Marietta do?" Ratchet's tone could roughly be translated to 'I'm pissed at you and you're gonna be sorry if you're not now.'

"W-well, whatever it was, nothing merits such a response," Hollan sounded nervous, the understatement of the year.

"Really? Yes, I'll admit violence should only be a last resort, but just wait until you hear the comment made by one Lily Forlow to one Marietta Iacon. Mari, care to relay to Mr. Hollan what was said to you?"

Tentatively, Mari spoke to the screen as it transmitted her words to the principal.

"Her words were, and I quote, 'Hey, it's the replacement child. You know, the only reason the Autobots adopted you is because they're a bunch of gay kid-fuckers,' Principal Hollan. I was only defending the Autobot's honor," Mari sobbed, sniffling between words.

The other end of the line went silent for nearly a full minute until finally, a furious, rage-filled voice came through.

"Mari, you have detention for the rest of the week, all other punishments off. Lily won't be coming back to this school ever. Hopefully, she'll have better luck with the Decepticreeps!" The line fell silent, filling the room with the sound of static before Ratchet closed the connection, huffing and radiating fury.

Turning to face his daughter, Ratchet saw a faint glow in her eyes, a cerulean that grew to an arctic blue, electricity cackling about her, the bolts of lightning lifting her up as if she were an arachnid. Her pores seeped liquid mercury, covering her entire body in the metallic substance. She grew, first it was subtle, then she shot upward, the metal coating her flesh as her body expanded, retaining its feminine shape as it hardened. Long, silver wires flowed from the back of her head, covering her back. Small lumps on her chest reminded Ratchet of human breasts, and the plating that curved down her body was so blatantly shaped exactly as a human female.

"Oh, no," breathed Ratchet, as he surged forward to catch the femme as she collapsed in his ivory arms.


End file.
